River Phantom
by A-World-About-To-Dawn
Summary: Eponine contemplates her life next to the river, and comes to a decision. No one will care if she's gone, will they?- -Once a one-shot, now extended, but lacks plot, so...help me? Review and give me your choice of EE or EM. Can go either way. OC CONTEST authors note in chapter 3 for detailes
1. Chapter 1

**yea, so i'm kinda bummed with my career as a FF writer cause my first 2 stories didnt get any reviews :( im still continueing A Night that Never Ends though,(thx 2 all who checked that out :D) so check it out if you want. i realized the fanfiction server mixes my words a little so tell me if theres any mistakes so i can correct them. but my plot bunny wouldnt leave me alone on this one, so enjoy! =^.^=**

**Disclamer: based on my writing, u can tell im not victor hugo**

**P.S. i suck at dialogue so if someone could give me pointers?**

Eponine's rough hands clutched the icy metal of the railing as she gazed upon the swirling water of the Seine, her eyes broken with pain and despair. Fresh bruises littered her arms and legs, and a trickle of crimson ran down the side of her face, contrasting starkly with her pale face and washed out green eyes.

The gamines mouth seemed to be moving, but no sound came out except a low keening sound, tossed with the wind and carried back to the streets, where people, street beggars and bourgeois alike, stopped and listened. Her lifeless stare was directed at the cold waters, watching the dark waves and crests of grayish foam. The moon cast a cold glow on the waters illuminating dark alleys and pools in the polluted liquid.

Broken teeth bit down on a bloodless lip as her fingers became white from holding the freezing surface of the tarnished copper beneath her. She seemed lost, undecided, unsure, but overall, had a look of defeat, of depression. Shadows played across Eponine's face, making every protruding bone in her body more apparent in the moonlight.

Eponine gripped the rail tighter as she came to a decision. Her bare feet braced themselves against the rough cobblestone side of the bridge as she hauled himself up to the top of the side wall. Her skinny arms spread out, trying to keep a precarious balance on the narrow rail. Winds whipped sideways against her, swirling in treacherous eddies, lashing her sallow cheeks.

Below her, the river churned with renewed fervor, as if it could sense a victim. Those subdued green eyes closed themselves, uneven lashes resting against calloused skin. Eponine's breath suddenly caught in her throat, her body jerking as if to throw herself in, and maybe that's what she was trying to do.

"Mademoiselle, are you sure you want to waste your life?" An even, smooth voice came from behind her, on the bridge. Eponine snapped her eyes open, turning carefully to see a young man with golden hair and piercing blue eyes leaning against a lamppost, watching her almost completed suicide attempt.

"And why do you care Monsieur? Surely you don't trouble yourself with street urchins. Go back to your books, your warm house and food, leave me to my own despair. A man like you should not be seen with a girl like me." Eponine's raspy, suspicious voice carried softly, edged with a small sliver of bitterness.

"On the contrary, Mademoiselle, I am trying to fight for people like you." The man's answer reached Eponine, and recognition registered in her mind.

"You're that student, Enjolras, Marius's friend, always trying to stir the people to fight. In the backroom of the Musain." Eponine croaked, leaning down to slide off the side of the bridge, landing in a hunched position at the base, strands of dark hair falling across her face.

"And you're Marius's shadow, the one who carries letters for him even though you love him yourself."

Eponine's anger flared, a flush spreading to her cheeks, undetectable in the night. "And what would you know about love, Monsieur? Have you been in love?"

"No, and you're example is precisely the reason why I don't want to" The revolutionary's words stung. Irritation rose within her. Eponine glared at him from the shadows, resting her chin on her knees.

"Maybe you should. You'll be able to see Marius's point of view. And i've seen plenty of _grisette_ take an interest to you on the street." Her words were layered with steel, and there was a certain venom to the word _grisette_. "But you wouldn't know love from my point of view." Her next sentence was soft and heartbroken, almost a breeze.

Her little speech softened Enjolras, albeit a little. "Look, go home and forget about suicide. It will get nowhere, and you might want to live to see the day we liberate France for the poor. The day when the people rise up." His voice had that same tone of passion he always spoke with at the meetings, the revolutionary fire in his eyes.  
"But Monsieur, understand that I have no home to go back to. No life to return to. No dawn for me to look forward to." Eponine whispered. Her face had lost the anger that had coloured her cheeks moments , and now it look like she had crumpled in on herself, an utterly subdued expression across her face.  
"Ending your life would still not improve it. Silencing the voices in your head won't solve anything." Enjolras spoke softly, yet still keeping up his marble facade.

Eponine her snapped her head up suddenly. "Are you sure about that? Are you sure that the river isn't the merciful way? Are you sure that the people will fight for a better life? Are you sure- are you sure that life will ever get better for the poor? The debased?" Her voice was cracked with sorrow and grief far beyond her age. " Are you sure that jumping can't solve my problems? Maybe it can." Her two green orbs had a hint of insanity, of wildness. "There's no one who cares for me. No one will care if I disappear. No one will ever spare a bit of care for me."

Eponine clambered to her feet, climbing back onto the slippery rail, her malnourished frame aching from the cold. She wobbled, shooting out her arms to balance herself. She turned away from the golden revolutionary, facing the turmoil of water once again, her jaw set in a determined line. Anxiety and dejection clouded her clouded her mind.

"What about Gavroche? Your siblings? Leaving this world might have more of an effect than you thought." Enjolras remarked coolly. He seemed unperturbed by the change in events.

Eponine stopped at that sentence, she pivoted to look at Enjolras again. "'Roche?" She seemed stunned by his words, and a look of uncertainty crossed her face.

Something cracked inside of Eponine. All the tears and heartbreak that had been dammed inside of her for who knows how long suddenly flooded through her veins, sending a parade of emotions across her face. She broke down into wild sobs, stumbling off the rail and collapsing in a heap on the ground, curling into a fetal position as shivers racked her body. Tears flowed down her face, and her breath came in ragged gasps.

"Damn you, Monsieur. Damn you all." She whispered through silent cries. She tensed as a hand was placed on her shoulder. Eponine gazed up into to ocean of Enjolras's eyes.

He didn't say anything, but stood over her as tears continued to leak down her face, mixing with the blood trickling down from a cut on her scalp. She eventually stopped sobbing and rose unsteadily to her feet.

"Do this for your brother. For Marius. There are people who care about you, mademoiselle." Enjolras spoke firmly. His voice carried no emotion, as if he were used to helping sobbing street urchins every night.

Eponine lowered her eyes. "I'm not any mademoiselle." she replied through shallow breaths. Enjolras didn't say anything to this remark, but stared at her square in the eye. "I'm sure Marius will be more than happy to provide a place to stay for you. For all you've done for him, i'm sure he is eager to repay you."

Eponine glared at him, but nodded, placing a hand over her face. "I'm sorry monsieur, to bother you. I'll be going." She shuffled her feet, leaning against the rail for support. She walked across the bridge, her face cast downwards. The lamplight gave a sickly yellow glow to her skin.

Enjolras stared after her, placid and composed. The gamine was the very example of what they were fighting to change. _If the people of the slums could see that, and join the fight, we'd be unstoppable,_ the revolutionary thought to himself.

He turned on his heel, his precise footsteps leading toward his flat, when Enjolras felt compelled to turn back around. Eponine was there, in the shadows, watching him like a cat. He inclined his head in farewell and turned once more, stepping under the lamplight of the streets.

A soft whisper reached his ears, words so softly spoken that it might have been a trick of the wind. "Thank you, Monsieur."

_For the wretched of the earth_

_there is a flame that never dies_

_even the darkest night will end_

_and the sun will rise_

**There it is! good? bad? review and say if you want this to be a one shot or not!**


	2. Chapter 2

** So I got 2 reviews! YAY! XD and i've decided to continue this, 'cause its working out better than my others. **

**Thank you so to Guest and ****CAdreaming555 for being my first 2 reviewers. And thank you the others who favorited it :D.**

**I don't have a plotline to this. It was intended to be a oneshot, but I got some feedback..so I decided to extend it, but I don't know where it's going. Leave a review for who you think Eponine should go with...Enjolras or Marius? I like both of them.**

**Disclaimer: Think. I don't own Les Mis. If i did everyone would have survived XD**

**Warning: There is **_**minor **_**language in this one.**

Eponine wrapped her father's old, threadbare coat around her in attempt to keep out the early morning chill. Streaks of white clouds painted the pale peach sky as the sun stretched over the horizon. Frost coated the streets, turning everything into a glittering statue.

Eponine saw no beauty in this. She saw colder nights, she saw windy days, she saw less food and money. Her mind was still fogged with replays the the previous night, the riverside, the dark water. It would be a lie to say she wasn't convinced out of jumping. The idea was open.

"Eponine." A rough hand grabbing her shoulder reminded her of where she was and took her back into reality. Hot breath ghosted against her ear. Eponine suppressed a shiver.

"Go away, Montparnasse." She reached a hand up to forcefully shove the dandy away, shying away from him.

Now an arm looped around her shoulder. "Aww, is that a way to treat a childhood sweetheart?" He whispered seductively. His voice was light, lilting, one of an upperclassmen. Eponine knew better. The lowlife was a wanna be.

"I said go away, and shut up!" She twisted, slapping him across the face.

Montparnasse had momentary expression of shock across his face, before it turned to an ugly rage. He grabbed her wrist tightly. "You little bitch." He slapped her in return, more violently. His rage became apparent in his once calm voice.

Eponine refused to flinch, staring at him, then took her free arm, punching him in the face and turning, a primal instinct spurring her on, racing away as fast as she could. Her bare feet slapped against the rough cobblestones, and for a while heavy boot steps echoed the faint sound of her own steps.

Eponine still ran a long while after the sounds had faded away, adrenaline and slight fear fueling her desire to run. She skidded through alleys, turned many corners, and even climbed some rooftops until she reached the market square.

There she stuck to the shadows, scooting out of the way for bourgeois and rich folk. The heat of her run was fading, replaced by the cold winds breezing through the open air market.

All remnants of last nights breakdown was gone from her face. It was smooth, cold, shadowy. Her eyes were expressionless. Yet in her mind, as the rush of energy faded, lingered a few thoughts of the river, of the revolutionary, of her attempt.

"Eponine!" The sound of his voice was enough to make Eponine smile. It made her scold herself for ever thinking of jumping. She turned, happiness displayed on her features.  
"Marius! Bonjour!" Eponine curtseyed, attempting to be like those rich ladies with sweeping dresses and ridiculous hats. A giddy grin was plastered to her face, and she laughed.

Marius chuckled. He gave a mock bow. "Always dreaming, 'Ponine." He grasped her by the shoulder, sending a jolt of pleasure.

As soon as it came, it vanished. "Cossette said she was coming to the market today." Sudden pain stabbed at Eponine's heart. Envy constricted its choking vines around her as her face flushed.

"Oh. Yes." Her tone was flat and muted. "Of course."

Eponine trailed after Marius as he pushed through the throngs of people haggling with merchants.

"Do you truly love her?" She muttered hesitantly.

More daggers ripped at her heart as his eyes lit up with delight. "Oh yes! She's wonderful!" Marius then turned away, occupied with searching for his 'love' in the crowd. Eponine ducked her head.

_Are you sure that Marius would grieve over me if I died, Enjolras? _She made a mental note about the encounter the night before.

Eponine lifted her head as Marius grabbed her arm. "Look! There she is!" Eponine gazed over where he was pointing, and locked eye contact with the beautiful blonde of her past. Cossette stared at her. On her face was no trace of resentment. No hate, no smugness. Only sweetness and friendship. It disgusted Eponine slightly.

_Lark._ How Eponine wished she could be the mysterious nightingale, the sweet singer of the shadows, instead of the brown sparrow she was. She wished she could compare to the _alouette. _She looked away, her face hard. To think this bourgeois was once her maid.

Marious pushed through the crowd, slipping up to Cossette when her father's back was turned, and whispered something in her ear. They both broke into radiant smiles, their eyes shining.

Eponine cast her eyes downward again, bitterness biting at her. She turned around when Marius reappeared at her side, breathless and blushing. "She going to meet me tonight. Come with me?" Eponine stared into his handsome face, so alight with pure and simple joy.

She nodded once. "Sure." That single word made it hard for her to breath, envy and heartache pulling on her, tainting her blood. The single word that she said day after day, to him and to her, to agree to carry letters, to carry love messages, to help them, to accompany them, it hurt her more than he would ever imagine.

All those, _You're the best Eponine!_s were empty promises. He took her for granted. _What would I do without you! _He repeated.

_Deliver your own letters maybe. Or find another servant. _She thought dryly. _Another someone you can torture. Anyone but me._

* * *

"_A heart full of light...A night bright as day...and you must never go away..." _The song had become a ritual for the two lovers, a song for every meeting, words that declared their love without plainly saying it.

The voices that Marius and Cosette used might have been melodic and beautiful, but to Eponine, it hit her like rusty nails plunging into her soul. She leaned against the skinny, scrawny tree that leaned against the ivy covered garden wall, pressing her shoulder on the smooth trunk.

"_Cosette, Cosette!" _

"_This is a chain we'll never break!" _

"_Do I dream..."_

"_I'm awake..."_

Eponine bit her lip, shutting her eyes in an effort to shut out the voices. They continued, pulsing through her head tauntingly. Eponine began to hum her own lyrics to the song, soft and almost cheery, in the way that Eponine looked totally resigned to the truth of her own words.

"_A heart full of love!" _

"_He was never mine to lose.." _Eponine's raspy voice joined the couples pledge, unheard. Her murmurs paled in comparison to Cosette's high soprano, but it was musical in its own way.

"_A heart full of you!"_

"_Why regret what could not be..."_

"_A single look, and then I knew!"_

"_These are words he'll never say..." _Eponine sang to her own melody, slower, lower than Marius's and Cosette's ballet. She had become used to the hurt after a while, as was the case every time, every time he visited.

"_I knew it too!" _

"_Not to me..." _

"_From today..."_

"_Not to me..."_

"_Every day..._

"_Not for me." _It was nearing the end of the torture, something Eponine was glad for.

"_For it isn't a dream..."_

"_His heart full of love..."_

"_Not a dream..."_

"_He will never..."_

"_After all!"_

"_Feel this way." _Her last sentence had a finality, an acceptance to it. Words that should be heartbroken had a layer of cold brass over it, as steely as the gray clouds that covered the darkened sky.

Eponine smiled to herself. It was almost comical that they sang to each other, like a romance novel, or a opera. It wasn't real.

Eponine didn't stick around to see the kiss. She stumbled along the wall, reaching the spot of the next part of her procedure of coming with Marius. She waited in the shadows by the rendezvous of every dusk.

"Are you going to scream tonight, again? Hmn?" An ugly sneer, cut with years of smoking and alcohol, whispered from the other side of the alley that cut near the larks house. Those muddy grey eyes that Eponine hated stared lazily from the shadows.

"Still faithful to rich boy?" A smoother, more careless declaration erupted from next to the eyes. It wasn't a question, it was a fact. Montparnasse gazed at her challengingly.

It was a game they played, a dangerous gamble with Patron Minette. Every meeting, they would ask. And she would defy. And it always hurt.

Eponine opened her mouth to reply, her standard scream, but stopped. Why should she save Marius, why should she let him rely on her for danger?

_Why should I not let them hurt you, to show the hurt you showed me? _Eponine was, for a moment, tempted to let them do their duty, to rob and kill.

Eponine hesitated, squeezing her eyes shut in conflict. Five pairs of hungry eyes watched her from the veil of lightly spun darkness, all of them sinister, evil. She could feel the heat of the threat reflected so clear in the dim irises.

Eponine opened her own eyes for a moment, silent decision on her face. Her father's gang seemed to take her silence as a go-ahead, all of them grinning triumphantly. Their boots scampered forward with muffled thuds, each of them echoing Eponine's heartbeat.

Eponine spun around when her father tried to pass her, heading for the garden, and attempted to punch him in the cheek. But as Eponine was skinny and didn't have the best aim, it was reduced to a feeble knock on the chin.

That was enough to set Monsieur Thenardier on a warpath. Eponine shrieked as loud as she could alerting anyone nearby. She wasn't watching to see who heard. She turned on her heel, her side flaring in protest as a sharp kick caught her ribcage.

Eponine raced through the alley, heaving for breath. Usually she stuck around with Thenardier, waiting for the punishment. He would take her "home," beat her, and it was over. The next morning she would cover the bruises, and force herself out to the streets.

She had never ran. And they were coming for her. She never tried to physically harm her father as he tried to break in.

_All the more bruises for me. _Bile rose in her throat at the thought of what they would do when they caught her.

All of the sudden, the angry noises of the Patron Minette faded behind her. Light spilled onto the uneven cobblestones from a lopsided cafe.

_Cafe Musain_

A faded wooden sign announced the name in worn gold letters. It was the place of the ABC friends. She might as well wait for Marius there.

Eponine scowled as she stared at her reflection in the fogged windows of the shop. _Maybe if I was pretty like her, he would like me too. _She continued to glare at her reflected face, thinking that if she closed her eyes and counted and wished, she could be pretty.

Eponine screwed up her eyes._ One...two...three...four...five. _She blinked open again and studied her look.

Nope. Still the same ragged, dark hair and too pale green eyes. Still the same sallow cheeks and limp skin stretched over thin bones. She was definitely not pretty.

Eponine turned from the window, disgusted with herself. _Since when did I care about looks?_ Her mind asked her.

_Since Marius fell in love with the Lark. He fell in love with the Lark, the Lark. Alouette, gentil Alouette. _Her heart sang tauntingly and the words danced in her head.

"Shut up." She whispered to herself. She pushed open the doors of the Musain, making a beeline towards the the stairs that jutted out like uneven teeth. Her quick feet fled behind the stairwell, to a door with a marked sign, _Les Amis de ABC._

Eponine turned the cold brass knob and very tentatively slipped in. Already her side was throbbing painfully. She merely adjusted her coat and sat in the very corner. Marius always came here after meeting Cosette.

Eponine sullenly took in the sights. The walls were decked with banners of red and black, and the small, cramped room was filled with the students, all shouting about words Eponine didn't understand. _Equality. Liberty. Brotherhood._

_Firstly, if you want to appeal to the poor, use words they actually know._

Eponine watched the meeting with half slitted. The pain in her side had dulled to a tolerable throb. All the students talked of revolution, how they would liberate the land.

_Patria, _they said. Eponine hoped they would abandon the cause. It was hopeless. The people of Paris would not rise up. It was obvious.

But they were devoted. They were not swayed. She learned that through all the meetings.

"Eponine!" Marius burst in the door, his eyes shining. "Oh, Eponine she is wonderful." He sat sat down on the chair beside her. "Perfect, golden hair."

"Yea...nice." Eponine glared at her hands.

"Marius. You're late." A sharp, displeased statement directed at Marius rose above the clamor. Clear blue oceans glared at the said person, strict and disappointed. "You must put your whole dedication to the revolt, Marius. You can't skip some here and there."

Marius's cheeks turned red. "Enjolras...I am as dedicated as any other." He muttered. Eponine noticed he didn't seem quite convinced himself.

"Doesn't seem like it." Eponine lifted her head to glance at Enjolras. He caught her eye, recognition flickering silently across his irises, so quick it actually maybe wasn't there. He broke the contact and frowned at Marius once more, before disappearing into the throngs of college students.

Eponine heard Marius begin to talk as soon as Enjolras was gone. Something about "Mon ange..." and, "Mon, cherie,"  
Eponine didn't want to listen the him prattle about Cosette. She got up, stuttering an excuse and a goodbye. The creaky door opened reluctantly as she tugged on the knob, her scarred palms briefly caressing the cool, tarnished metal. She slid almost like a ghost through the brightly lit cafe. The bell above the door chimed merrily as she pushed the door open and was met immediately with a front of icy cold air.

_Where to go now..._ She could hardly return to the derelict shack she called home. She could always go to Gavroche, but she didn't want him to worry.

_The river. _She'd stayed there before, it wasn't too bad...nevermind it was. Although it had to be better than the rathole she lived in.

Pain and weariness weighing her down, Eponine trekked to the bridge. The river taunted her still, but she pushed its jeers away. She was too exhausted for another mental battle, and the old coat wrapped around her provided little warmth.

Under the bridge, cold drops of water slicked the ground. The river rushed along below her, the chill of its water emanating up the bank. Eponine curled into a tight ball, closing her eyes. Cold air pressed on her from all sides.

A dark cover of dreams washed over her mind, presenting themselves to her in forms of memories, half-baked and no more than images.

_Montparnasse._

_Screams._

_Herself screaming._

_Monsieur Thenardier._

_Castles on Clouds._

Eponine woke up in cold sweat, fingers digging into her arms as she huddled in shock. The water had risen considerably, now just a few feet away. Eponine controlled her hitched gasps by countering them with deep breaths, calming herself.

It was still dark, and only a few stars were visible. The thick blanket of indigo was a rippling tapestry, ever changing.

The water mirrored the sky-dark, cold, unseeing. Eponine closed her eyes again, hoping to get back to sleep. Her pale face was hardly visible in the dim moonlight and half-hidden in a tangle of arms.

_It's cold._

_It's too warm._

_It's freezing._

Those thought came and dispersed in her mind as she drifted in and out of consciousness. The night dragged on.

Eponine lay limp as the crimson streaks painted the sky red and gold. Bronze tipped clouds drifted in the lazy morning light.

She stayed there, not moving as the soft rays turned to glaring heat, as it cooled and cast a copper glow over everything. Her breathing was shallow, short, and feverish.

Finially, when the shadows descended across Paris again, she stirred. Eponine pushed the curtain of hair out of her face and stared out over the Seine.

_Its been longer than one night._ Eponine played with that thought until she understood it in her bleary state.

She pushed herself up, nearly falling as dizziness hit her like a wooden plank.

_I stayed out here, and whaddya know, I get sick. _She mentally scolded herself, brushing herself off the best she could.

Staggering from the bridge and the river, Eponine plodded by the shops and houses of Paris. She had no particular destination, just away. Her feverish mind was utterly confused on what to do.

A familiar, brightly lit shop appeared in front of her as she lifted her eyes.

_The Musain. I could stay around here. The bourgeois tend to be nicer. _Eponine leaned heavily against the cool stone wall, her papery skin pressing against the uneven bricks. She slid down the wall, tucking her head on her legs. _What 'bout Gavroche? He might be worried for not seeing me for a day..._

_It's so warm. I'll stay here. _That drowsy thought overtook the others, a smile curving on her lips. Sleep tugged at her mind, urging her to give in.

And she did. It was too tempting. The icy warmth. The comforting shadows. Outlined against her eyelids, she saw the silhouette of a man, maybe many men. After that, she let herself slide into sleep.

**So yea. No plot. Review if you want Marius or Enjolras! And give me a plot idea, will you?**


	3. Authors Note

**Hello! I'm so sorry everyone, about not updating, but i've had a bit of writers block. I have half of the chapter done. Its just personalities and dialogue...and my recent obsession with Harry Potter, more specifically, Jily (James/Lily). I'm still checking this fandom, but not as often. I'll get the next chapter up as soon as I can, promise!**

**And, I have an OC competition for this. I need an OC, female, for she's going to be Eponine's friend. Doesn't matter if she's rich or poor, and she can have a romantic interest in one of the ABC if you want. Not Enjy, cause he's voted for Eppy. Okay? So leave your OC in the review.**

** Meghan**


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